But is that such a good thing for a team that finished in fourth-place at 68-73 with a franchise record 158 errors and missed the Eastern League Playoffs for only the second time in five years under veteran manager Tony Franklin?

Exactly how much of an upgrade will this be from an underachieving group that was abysmal on the road last season, lost 15 of their last 19 games at home while still in contention and for the first time in a long time does not feature a single prospect among Baseball America’s Yankees’ Top 10?

With the season opener against defending EL champion New Hampshire slated for Thursday night, it appears left-hander Shaeffer Hall (10-8, 4.12 ERA) will get the ball to begin the Thunder’s 19th season at Waterfront Park.

According to team sources and published reports, Franklin will roll out 28 players - 13 pitchers, three catchers, seven infielders and five outfielders, including top position prospect Zoilo Almonte.

Following Hall in the rotation will be right-hander Graham Stoneburner, who missed most of last season, righty Brett Marshall, who has undergone Tommy John ligament replacement surgery, righty Craig Heyer and starter-turned-reliever-turned starter Josh Romanski. Switch-pitcher Pat Venditte is the marquee name in the Trenton bullpen, along with projected closer Chase Whitley.

Mike Dill/For The TimesSecond baseman David Adams, right, returns to the Thunder after missing most of the past two seasons with a fractured ankle sufffered in May of 2010 at Portland.

Second baseman David Adams returns after missing most of 2010 and virtually all of 2011 recovering from bone fragments in his right ankle, an injury suffered with Double-A Trenton in May of 2010 at Portland.

Shortstop Jose Pirela and his staggering 39 errors from a season ago will need to improve his entire game to be taken seriously as a viable prospect, while error-prone first baseman Rob Lyerly (20 in 68 games) and newcomer Ronnier Mustelier will man the corner infield spots. Rounding out the infield will be Walter Ibarra, versatile utilityman Addison Maruszak and Yadil Mujica.

Joining Zoilo Almonte in the Trenton outfield will be Abraham Almonte, Melky Mesa in center field and quite possibly 2010 stalwart Daniel Brewer. Hit or miss slugger Cody Johnson will be given another chance to cut down on his strikeouts (138 in 74 games), which led to his late-season demotion to Class-A Tampa.

It appears Thunder fans will have to wait until sometime in June for stud catching prospect J.R. Murphy, as he has been ticketed for Class-A Tampa. Oft-injured and sometimes troubled outfield prospect Slade Heathcott also could be in Trenton before mid-summer. Until then, Jose Gill and Mitch Abeita will handle most of the catching duties for the six-year skipper Franklin and pitching coach Tommy Phelps.